An entity may require a prospective client or existing client to receive, review and consent and/or otherwise agree to information and/or requirements included in specific official and/or authorized documents. The entity may require receipt of the consent and/or agreement prior to an entity representative entering into a communication interaction with the client.
Often, many entities use conventional methods to transmit and receive consent data to and from the clients. For example, an entity representative may hand a client a stack of documents. The client typically reviews the documents and verbally consents and/or agrees to the information and/or requirements included in the documents. The entity representative usually records, in a non-electronic manner, the client's consent and/or agreement to the information and/or requirements included in the documents.
One example of a transaction requiring consent is a financial instrument vendor speaking with a potential customer about purchase possibilities such as mortgages or investments. Due to government required regulations, before such conversations may occur, certain legal disclosures must be read to the potential customer. Similarly, due to non-solicitation laws, a follow up conversation with the customer may not occur unless the customer previously ordered such a consultation or provided consent to receive such a follow up conversation, from for example an investment specialist.
One example of a document requiring consent may be a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) release document. Upon signing a HIPAA release document, the signer may authorize an entity to share and/or release specific personal information and/or documentation.
One example of a document requiring agreement may be a notice that a specific financial service is not Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insured and may lose value. Upon signing the notice, the signer may make clear that he or she agrees to continue a discussion with a financial services advisor despite the fact that financial products offered may not be FDIC insured and may lose value.
The conventional non-integrated nature of consent information dispersal and retrieval creates the possibility that consent data may not be reliably captured either in writing or digitally. As a result, conventionally entities often repeatedly ask for the same consent information over and over again. Also, failure to properly present proof that the proper consent was obtained may result in audit or regulatory burdens or fines.
Therefore, systems and methods for securely receiving real-time, properly executed consent, and documenting, in a retrievable manner, the received executed consent may be desirable.
As a result, there is clear utility in and benefit from, novel methods and apparatus for retrieving consent information.
For the purposes of this disclosure, like reference numerals in the figures shall refer to like features unless otherwise indicated. The drawings are only an exemplification of the principles of the invention and are not intended to limit the disclosure to the particular embodiments illustrated.